On June 3, 1994, the Yankees announced they would move their franchise from Albany-Colonie to Norwich, Connecticut, and rename the team the Norwich Navigators. Property in Norwich was allotted for a new stadium on November 3, 1994, and the team played their season-opening game on April 6, 1995, with a win over the Bowie Baysox. The new stadium's opening game was 11 days later and ended again with a Navigators victory, this time over the Reading Phillies.

Norwich reached the Eastern League playoffs four times within the next six years, while many current and former New York Yankees were leading the team. On September 14, 2002, the Navigators won their first and only Eastern League championship with a five-game series victory at home over the Harrisburg Senators, under the direction of rookie manager Luis Sojo.

Within weeks, the Yankees announced that they were ending their affiliation with the Navigators and beginning one with the Trenton Thunder. Later that fall, the San Francisco Giants signed them as their new parent club for the 2003 season.

In 2008, the San Francisco Giants renewed their PDC with the Defenders franchise until 2010. The following season, the Defenders won the Northern Division title, qualifying for the Eastern League playoffs. The Defenders defeated the New Britain Rock Cats three games to one in the ELDS, the second time making it to the Eastern League Championship Series in franchise history; however, the Defenders fell short in the end, this time losing three games to one against the Akron Aeros.

On September 23, 2009, it was announced that the Defenders would leave Norwich for their current home at The Diamond in Richmond, Virginia, where they will continue seeking proposals for a new ballpark in the Richmond metropolitan area. The team name was changed to the "Flying Squirrels".[1]

Name

The name the Richmond Flying Squirrels was chosen through a Richmond Times-Dispatch readers "name-the-team-contest," which ended on October 15, 2009.[1] The name was submitted by Brad Mead of Prince George, Virginia. Other finalists were the Rock Hoppers, Hambones, Rhinos, Flatheads, and Hush Puppies. (The name Hambones was later ruled out of the contest after the city's uproar and the NAACP finding that "the Hambones" could be seen as a derogatory term directed towards the African-American community.)

Logo

The new Flying Squirrels logo was unveiled on December 1, 2009.[citation needed] It is a black, red, and grey flying squirrel with a patch in the shape of an "R" (for Richmond) on top of an acorn over its heart. The logo was designed by San Diego-based sports branding firm Brandiose. It was named the logo of the year by Ballpark Digest in 2010[2] and the best minor-league logo by Baseball America in 2015.[3]

Season records

(Norwich & Connecticut: Place indicates finish in Northern Division, Richmond: Place indicates finish in Western Division)